Sunil Narine finally came good with both bat and ball to steer the Trinbago Knight Riders to a 22-run victory over the Jamaica Tallawahs in their Hero Caribbean Premier League matchup at the Queen’s Park Oval, Port-of-Spain, on Friday night.
Narine struck a rapid 22-ball 46 then bagged two wickets for 23 runs as TKR did just enough to keep the hard-hitting Andre Russell from pulling off a come-from-behind win for his side.
Russell got three lives on six, 16 and 27 thanks to some sloppy TKR fielding late on and combined with George Worker in a 67-run fifth-wicket partnership. However, he eventually deposited a Jimmy Neesham full toss straight into the hands of Javon Searles at deep mid-off to depart for 44, including four fours and four sixes, in the final over and with it went the Tallawahs’ fleeting hopes of a win.
Neesham then added the wicket of Shamar Springer (2) to finish with two for 27 as Tallawahs closed on 169-6.
The victory was the second straight for the defending champions and kept them atop the six-team table with four points heading into their last of three early home games against the St Lucia Zouks on Sunday, before they head out to some away matches.
Earlier, after TKR opener Lendl Simmons went for an eight-ball 11, it was initially the Sunil Narine show. After getting an early life on 14 from Gayle, who grassed a skier, Narine, who did not come out in his usual opening spot as he was in the bathroom when the umpires started the innings, was like a man possessed. He hit the white ball to all parts of the oval as he compiled 46 runs from just 22 deliveries, including four fours and three sixes. Medium-pacer Shamar Springer finally got Narine’s prized wicket when he got him to mistime another big shot off a slower ball and Chadwick Walton gobbled up the catch at long-on as TKR stood at 85-2.
Neesham, batting hero in the previous match, did not last long this time, as he offered a return catch to Steven Jacobs for just six runs as TKR stumbled to 93 for three.
But then youngster Tion Webster took over. The 24-year-old right-hander shared in two vital partnerships of 47 with Ramdin and an unbroken 51 with skipper Kieron Pollard to steer TKR close to 200 with his first CPL half-century. Webster faced 49 balls and hit seven fours and two sixes in his unbeaten knock of 66.
Pollard himself struck a 21-ball 33 but surprisingly was unable to clear the boundary on the night and was even kept relatively quiet by pacer Oshane Thomas in the final over, which went for only eight runs.
In the Tallawahs’ turn at the crease, Glenn Phillips never knew which way Narine was turning the ball in the first over he faced from him and lost his leg stump as he went to flick the last ball, as the visitors lost their first wicket with just 15 runs on the board.
Talisman Chris Gayle began to look his usual ominous self in the sixth over when he belted pacer Ali Khan back over his head and high into the stands to silence the home fans. But going for another big hit the very next ball, he was caught by substitute fielder Akeal Hosein for 28 as Tallawahs slipped to 39 for two.
Rovman Powell (1) then picked out Khary Pierre at deep mid-wicket after he lofted the fourth ball he saw from Sri Lankan leg-break bowler Seekkuge Prasanna skywards but didn’t have enough power in the shot.
But when Chadwick Walton (28) also holed out to Narine to leave the Tallwahs struggling at 93 for four, Russell strode to the wicket.
Troubled by a shin injury he picked up while bowling, Russell started off cautiously but lived a charmed life as TKR suddenly went off-colour in the field late on.
Russell was first dropped on six by the usually safe Neesham, then by Prasanna on 16 after he mistimed a slog sweep that looped high into the air. Hosein also put Russell down on 27 before Javon Searles snapped up the fourth chance he offered on the long-off boundary.
SUMMARISED SCORES:
TRINBAGO KNIGHT RIDERS 191-4 (Tion Webster 66*, Sunil Narine 46, Kieron Pollard 33*, Denesh Ramdin 21, Shamar Springer 1/30, Andre Russell 1/37) v JAMAICA TALLAWAHS 169-6 (George Worker 46, Andre Russell 44, Chadwick Walton 28, Sunil Narine 2/23, Jimmy Neesham 2/27)
Result: TRINBAGO KNIGHT RIDERS WON BY 22 RUNS